JSO X GUAM - Guurramali Silver Pendant Rachel Bywaters

JSO X GUAM | Limited Editions

‘Jewellery & Small Objects x Griffith University Art Museum’ is an initiative that gives an undergraduate student an opportunity to pitch and execute a limited-edition sterling silver piece of jewellery responding to one of GUAM’s exhibitions. The object is developed with JSO staff support and JSO sterling silver. These are sold with a percentage of proceeds going to the artist and to GUAM, with material costs returned to JSO. The silver from any unsold pieces is reused in the next range. For the first edition Rachel Bywaters has created two pendants (‘Gunimaa’ and ‘Guurramali’) in response to GUAM’s recent exhibition ‘Taring Padi: Tanah Tumpah Darah’. Each pendant is 3.4 x 2.5cm and includes a custom printed hessian gift bag. 

Artist Statement: Guurramali

The raised fist, famously associated with the Black Power Movement, has a long history as a global symbol of solidarity and the fight against oppression. The fist, also reflected in Taring Padi's wood-carved relief print ‘Solidaritas (Solidarity)’, symbolises that we are bound with others in a common struggle that shares a unified message of resistance, overcoming and grassroots revolution. ‘Guurramali’, which translates to 'resist, stand strong' in the Gamilaraay language, reverberates the Indonesian collective, Taring Padi, which refers to the pointy end of the rice plant, that although tiny, can be highly irritating and impactful, highlighting the power of collective resistance against oppressive systems that have historically and continue to harm people particularly Indigenous and minority peoples today. The feminine hand pays homage to the resilience and strength of our Matriarchs and staunch female leaders who are often at the frontlines, fighting for freedom in our communities and reckoning with the colony.

About Rachel Bywaters

Rachel Bywaters lives on Kabi Kabi country and is a proud descendant of the peoples of the Gamilaroi nation on her father's side and has European bloodlines on her mother's side. After a career in the Community Services sector, Bywaters is pursuing her passion for creative expression and storytelling at the acclaimed Contemporary Australian Indigenous Art program at Griffith Queensland College of Art and Design. Central to her multidisciplinary practice is the innovative use of societal artefacts to express socio-political issues and decolonial perspectives. Bywaters explores themes of First Nations truth-telling, resistance and resilience, drawing on her personal history and lived experiences. She has participated in group exhibitions in Victoria and Queensland and currently has artworks exhibited at the Queensland State Archives.